Heart to Heart
by shopgirl152
Summary: After The Running of the Chinchillas, Ferb finds himself feeling unliked by a very important member of his family. one-shot. Ferb/Candace


**A/N: **Occurs after the events in the Der Kinderlumper episode. So later that same day.

* * *

Ferb walked into his bedroom, glancing around before sitting on the edge of his bed with a sigh.

"Okay, come on little guys." He looked up as Phineas entered the room, carrying a box full of Chinchillas and setting them on the bed. He smiled, turning around. "Hey Bro, check it out; these little guys were left at the Running of the Chinchillas. I told Mayor Doofenshmirtz we'd find homes for them." The red head turned back to the box, seeming to be lost in thought. "To bad we can't keep them. They're awfully cute."

Perry skittered into the room, hopping up on the bed and giving the Chinchillas a good sniff. He growled low before circling three times and lying down.

Phineas chuckled. "Well, Perry seems to like them at least." He turned to his brother. "Ferb, are you okay? You haven't said a word since I walked in." The boy shrugged. "You sure? It looks like something's on your mind." He walked over, sitting down next to his brother. "Come on Bro; it's me. Let it all out."

Ferb shifted uncomfortably on the bed before turning to the red head. "Candace doesn't like me."

"Huh?" The other boy raised a brow. "Of course she likes you Bro! She's your sister-"

"_Step_sister."

"Well, yeah, technically. But...what's that got to do with anything?"

"Everytime Candace has a problem or needs something, she runs to you, asking for help in fixing whatever predicament she's gotten herself into."

"She calls for you too."

Ferb sighed. "No, she doesn't. I'm an afterthought." He pulled his knees up to his chest. "You two have a much stronger bond. You're close. Candace and I don't have that. We never have."

"You gotta remember; our Dad died when we were both very young. I mean, yeah Mom was around, she took care of us, but Candace and I knew she was sad, so we tried to make it easier on her. If one of us had a problem, we'd go to the other. So if I had a problem, I went to Candace and if she had a problem, she came to me. We leaned on each other for support. We...kinda got closer as a result."

"I know that. But, why doesn't she spend time with me? Or try to connect?"

"Oh you know Candace; she's wrapped up in whatever we're doing." He paused. "Or whatever Jeremy's doing. She probably just doesn't think about it."

"Yes, but-"

Phineas put a hand on his brother's shoulder. "Look Bro, I don't have the answers. I wish I did, but I don't." His voice softened. "And it seems to me that I'm not the one you should be asking..." Ferb looked at him. "Talk to Candace Bro. Ask her. See what she says."

He smiled at the red head, giving him a one-armed hug before climbing off the bed and walking out of the room.

* * *

"Stacy, I don't know where it is. I was supposed to return the Priness Rutabega staff, but I can't find it. And I told Jeremy I'd meet him in an hour!" Candace paced around her room, trying to think. "No, I already looked there." A pause. "Yeah, looked there too. I-" she was interrupted by a soft knock on the door. She looked up as someone entered the room. "I'll call you back Stace." She hung up the phone. "What is it Ferb? I'm a little busy right now."

He looked at her before walking over to her bed, sitting down. He looked down at his hands, seeming to be lost in thought.

"Well, what is it? If you don't have anything to say, then why don't you just-"

"Why don't you like me?"

"What?" She blinked, staring wide-eyed at him before bursting into laughter. "Why don't I _like_ you? Oh this is great; this is by far the funniest thing I have ever-" Candace stopped laughing, noticing the look on her brother's face. "Oh. You're serious."

"Yes, yes I am."

"Ferb." Her voice softened as she crossed the room, sitting down next to him. "Why do you think I don't like you?"

"You never call for me."

"Call for you?"

"You always yell for Phineas, or both of us. Never me." He sighed. "Today, when you were running from the Chinchillas, you said 'Phineas Phineas Phineas...and Ferb. I was an afterthought."

She placed a hand on his shoulder, which he promptly removed. "Ferb, you weren't an afterthought; I was running from a pack of wild, scary Chinchillas. I wasn't thinking. Besides, you don't talk much. I mean, don't take this the wrong way, but sometimes it's a little hard trying to communicate with you."

"Yes, but you never try." There was an edge to his voice. "And you and Phineas are closer than you and I are."

"Well yeah. We grew up together; you didn't become a part of our family until a few years later. Besides, Phineas and I told you about how close we got when our Dad died. You know that."

"That's not an excuse."

"I didn't say it was." Candace glanced around the room before looking down at her feet, lost in thought. "Look Ferb, I know it's not always easy living with me." She smirked. "Let's face it, I'm a bundle of neuroses. I mean, that's excusable right?" He didn't respond. Candace sighed, glancing at him. "You know, maybe I haven't been the best sister. Maybe I've been a little neglectful-"

"A little?"

"Don't push me alright?"

He nodded.

"All I'm saying is, well, it's not just on me. I mean, yeah, part of it _is_ my fault, but...you could have just as easily come to me sooner and told me you felt left out or that you felt as though I didn't like you." She smiled. "Ferb, you're my brother. I love you."

"_Step_brother."

She scoffed. "Oh yeah. Like _that_ label means anything." He looked at her. "You don't have to be from the same Mother or Father to be family." He smiled, ready to say something when Candace's cell phone rang. She checked the caller ID before answering. "Oh hey Jeremy. Did I find it? No, not yet. It's no big deal though; I can drop it off tomorrow." She paused. "Yeah, I'll be there in..." she trailed off, her gaze falling to her brother, who was sadly making his way toward the door. She placed a hand over the mouthpiece. "Ferb wait."

He paused at the door, looking over his shoulder as she returned to her phone call.

"Actually Jeremy, I'm going to have to cancel." A short pause. "Yeah. Something important came up; I'll tell you about it later. Yeah, I'll call you later. Bye." Candace smiled as she hung up the phone. "What do you say we go out for ice cream? My treat. It...probably won't make up for all the times I-"

Ferb smiled, placing a hand on her arm. "It's a start."

She returned the smile. "For both of us."


End file.
